The Ballerina Born to Kill
by sheistheblackwidow
Summary: A young girl grows up into the revered Black Widow. But how did she become that famed figure? And how did she come to join the Avengers? *This is my version of Natasha's story. It won't follow all the correct timeless because I don't want it to.*
1. She remembers, she escapes

There it was. The grand fireplace. Photos of a once happy and complete family still graced it's mantel as if everything was fine and this wasn't a place where little girls were taken from their families and trained to be world-class killers. At least after this it'll all be gone. Fire. The flames reached for the opening, itching to get out and devour everything in its path.

It'll destroy everything. Everything. All the hurt. All the abuse. All the hate that was bred here.

It has to be gone. Everything needs to be destroyed. Nothing good had EVER happened here, in this place of insanity and traitors and murderous spies. This place had given way to serial killers, kidnappers and betrayal. The place where sinners come to rest.

"Oh my god I hate this fucking place!" She yelled.

She hears a scream and when she turns, she thinks she sees her. She hand reaching towards her as if to touch fingertips. She reaches back. She hopes to feel the flesh she once knew covered those hands. Be when she finally reaches her fingertips the hand vanishes. Then the rest of her vanishes until all that's left eventually is the telltale sign of striking red hair- so much like hers- but then even that fades to gray before vanishing too. Just like always.

Thankfully she never sees the other one.

All she wants now is to burn t to the ground. All the memories and all the shame. Gone. Embers.

And so she makes her decision. It was time for it all to come to an end. Time for a new era for her. This time, she'd make sure none would ever repeat the tragedy and heartache that came to pass before. Exhaling the breath she was holding she reached over and looked into the eyes of the woman in front of her. She had come running into the room when the alarm went blaring. She looked into her eyes and threw that candelabra onto the concrete flooring. The flames flickered, highlighting the faces of the two women. Both looked up, one in terror and shock, the other in defiance.

"NO!" She saw the lips moving but all she heard was the echo of a woman who covered up for the many crimes of the people who kidnapped her and helped create the monster that would eventually murder anyone who got in her way.

She calmly stepped around the flames that were quickly eating up her home and gave her handlers a look that said "Good Luck."

"It's over ."

And with that she walked out the door of the Red Room forever as she heard the heavy footfalls of what she was sure were other fighters trained by the same people she has trained with. She couldn't outrun them and they gained on her as she fell over a pile of bodies stacked away ready for cremation. Remains of fighters who didn't make the cut. Thrown away like trash.

Natalie woke up, sweating. Heart beating hard and heavy she got out of bed and ran through her bathroom door. Bending over the toilet seat, shs lost what little food she had still in her stomach.

At least I got halfway through the night this time. She thought to herself. She always had nightmares of her escape but on every one she was just almost able to escape before being caught.

Ever since she'd been cornered by SHIELD and saved from the KGB she had been looking over shoulder expecting to see the telltale black and red lined windowless vans she remembered from the day she had been taken from her family.

Her captors had tried hard to ingrain false memories of what they wanted her to believe her life was like before they took her. She remembered her parents- her mother with her warm eyes that hers were duplicates of and the fiery hair that matched. Her father a man who made sure his wife and daughter never had to suffer under the horrendous rule of the dictatorship. He hid his family underneath the census. They never even knew about her and her mother until one day a neighbor ratted them out inadvertently. The next day was the beginning of the end. She was woken by her father and mother and sent down to the basement where they sent her down the passageways underneath their house. It was almost a perfect escape plan. Almost. They barged through the door before he could get through and instead he shut it behind them and faced off against the government soldiers alone. She never saw her father again. Her mother was heartbroken and even though she was able to lead them to safety just outside of Stalingrad, it wasn't long before they were found. Her mother was taken away from her before they even knew what happened. A bullet sent right through her head. Natalie only remembers her falling and falling to her knees trying to wake her up, crying when she didn't. She remembers being grabbed roughly by a man and tossed on his shoulder like she weighed nothing and a burlap sack was thrown over her head as she screamed and punched the man trying to get him to put her down.

She remembers. They don't want her to but she remembers. She had a life before this. A family. Something to hold onto. And hold onto she did. Even through the worst of the beatings and training, she held onto the most prominent of the fading memories. Those were the ones she refused to let fade away.

*

So this is actually my first MCU fic. Both of them were uploaded to Archive first. As I said on there, this will not follow any of the timelines in the MCU (since we know nothing about Natasha from the MCU). It may follow some of the Black Widow comics but not by much. I also will not be adding Clint into this because I want to write into Nat and Wanda's relationship. They were obviously close enough as we saw in Infinity War. Otherwise how would they have known where to find her and Vision? We never really got that sort of look into their friendship.


	2. Getting Out of Russia

She spent 6 months on the run and was running on close to empty. She was still in Russia and had no resources readily available but her 14 years in the Red Room had taught her a thing or two about reliance and how to live on the run. She wasn't about to let herself get caught.

Hitchhiking her way through eastern Europe might not have been the best way to get around but it was all she had. And she was able to pickpocket the drivers and people unfortunate to feel sympathy for her and let her hitch a ride. She hailed another ride and was glad when someone pulled over and rolled their windows down. She saw a young man and woman.

"Looking for a ride? You're free to jump in the back if ya want". She nodded and did just that. She was lost in her thoughts before they even pulled back onto the highway.

There were times where she felt she could stop and rest and times where she actually felt safe. She had thoughts of giving to and going back but that would mean instant death. She knew that because punishment for abandonment was having to fight to the death. And if you won you were still killed just because you tried to leave. It was a warning to those who had any inkling of a thought about leaving the Red Room.

"You won't get out alive" they would tell them. "This is for life. You either die fighting or we kill you. There is No way out for you." She knew they weren't lying. She'd watched too many of her friends die because they weren't careful or they questioned the way they were being trained and why they couldn't go outside whenever they wanted to. The smallest things could get you killed.

Natalia got out of the final car and with a glance and a small smile towards the driver and his wife, she headed into the gas station where she watched customers arrive and leave...

Coming out she walked up to the blue-black Mercedes and jingled the keys in her hand.

"At least some skills were worth having learned" she thought.

The engine roared to life and she sped off down the road as the cars owner came running out the station.

She didn't even look back, heading towards her new life. She was through with being a KGB lackey. She was now her own person.

**Three days later….**

The sun shined down on the redhead as she laid on the cool white sands of the beach off the coast of France. She'd finally made her way out of russia a few days ago and hadn't stopped any longer than a 10 minute respite to change clothes, fill up on fuel and food. She was currently lying on a beach before her flight bound for America was set to arrive.

"Natasha. Romanoff. Natasha Romanoff. I am Natasha Romanoff." Okay, that's good. It sounds… Perfect.

She needed to be able to trick everyone she met into believing she was this Natalie. Becoming a new person was harder than it seemed. You had to become that person and be wholeheartedly dedicated to it. As her superiors in the Red Room would say, "If you can't dedicate, you will be done." Done meant dead. They wouldn't dare risk stragglers. She couldn't risk it either. She also knew that they would be looking for her anywhere she went. She was sure that they wouldn't dream of her having fled to America. After all, she had been more or less bred to believe nothing but lies about the United States. She might be safe for a while there. Even for a long while if she stayed under the radar

Packing her stuff up she walked towards the ferry that would take her back to the mainland. From there she would catch a car to the airport.

**America**

She got off the plane and looked out at the flood of people running to and from their flights and towards family for spirited and emotional reunions. It was loud and obnoxious. People had no concept of personal space or respect. She could see why those outside the country had such views of it and the people who resided within.

Could she stay here? She didn't know. But she could certainly try.

She strolled through the crowd and caught a taxi. Luckily she had been thorough in finding a place to live and work. However the passport almost didn't work out. There was a glitch and luckily they had let her through stating it must be a technicality. Natalie was sure it wasn't a simple glitch but she thanked whatever gods there were for the ignorance of the flight attendants. She should not have been allowed to stay on the plane.

Anyway, she wanted to get an early start on the apartment. And she needed to figure out just where her new place of work was. It was already getting dark by the time she got to the apartments address. Shrugging the bags over her shoulder, she pulled on the gate enclosure and checked for her room floor and number. It was nicer than she thought it would be considering she didn't have much to pay for it. Dropping her stuff on the floor, she showered and got ready for bed. She took out the handcuffs she had always slept with.

_(Flashback)__They locked the girls to their beds with handcuffs to prevent any middle- of-the-night escape attempts. Each girl had skin raw from tossing and turning while the cuffs were on during the night. Some had skin that had managed to tear and bleed, becoming scars. She was one of them.__(End of flashback)_

She couldn't sleep without them and flicked out the lamp light. She was out before another thought passed through her head.

I promise the action will start within the next chapter. She will meet up with some familiar faces soon!


	3. 3

Chapter 3

She was woken by a loud banging on the door of the room next to hers and she quickly unlocked the cuffs and jumped out of bed grabbing her weapons from under her pillow. When she finally realized what was happening she breathed a sigh of relief and set them back down.

She was exhausted. A night of on and off nightmares had done nothing but keep her up until she would drift off again only to be woken by a new nightmare.

She got back up and put on her running clothes and set out for a run. She wanted to get familiar with the area around her. Her instincts that had been beaten into her were always full blown.

Nothing but dogs and children. It was quiet. Unsettlingly even.

"Okay. Now it's time to find my place of work" she sighed and went back to get dressed into something more appropriate. She kept thinking about dying her hair because she knew it made her stand out and anyone who knew she was missing would be looking for a redhead but she just didn't have the time. Maybe later, she thought.

Walking up to the gold plated building she read, Stark Industries. It was humongous. Tall gold steel plates went up along the suds. It was gaudy.

She was here to meet an Anthony Stark. She remembered hearing of a Howard Stark long ago. Then he was the friend and confidant of the Captain America everyone had been so obsessed with. That was before it all went to hell. Before she was taken from her family, before Hydra and the Red Room.

Stepping into the building she was greeted with blinding white. The exterior was surprisingly not as bold and out there as the exterior and she was glad for that.

She was met by the secretary, a Pepper Potts who seemed more "behind-the-scenes boss lady" than "hold the phones". She was sure she was the true brain behind everything here and that this Anthony was simply the face and name.

"Hi! Miss. Romanoff? Mr. Stark asked me to meet you here so I could lead you to his office." Pepper greeted her with an enthusiastic smile extending her hand.

Nat's POV

Smiling back I take her hand and gave it a firm shake. I like her though, I do wonder why she lets him take the credit for everything she does here. Its strange…

She gives another smile and turns to lead me up the stairs towards what I'm assuming to be Mr. Stark's office. He's standing on the balcony overlooking the view of Manhattan. It is quite a view from what I can see from my spot near the door.

She clears her throat and he turns to look and instantly his face lights up when his eyes meets her. Hmmm, I think.

"This is Miss. Romanoff. You wanted to meet her for an interview today?". She introduced me and turned around and gave me a smile and then turned back and obviously mouthed something to him because he started walking towards me with a giant, stupid grin on his face.

"Hello Miss. Romanoff."

"Hello. Nice view you've got here." I quipped.

"Thanks. It helps me think."

"Tony, I'm heading out to meet Maria for lunch. Bring you back anything?" Pepper's voice chimes in behind us.

"Um no that's alright. Tell her and Wanda I said hi." His eyes don't leave her until she's out of his sight. Then his attention is back on me and she's kind of nervous because he's obviously sizing me up. It almost borders on uncomfortable and it makes me anxious until he finally start a talking. Mostly about himself but he does ask about why I wanted to work here and what I was doing on the island. I noticed he kept staring at my hair. Shit. I thought. He would probably be able to get into the channels. Of course I didn't give him the whole truth.

"Basically, I needed a brand new start. Things weren't so good at home and I needed to start over away from it." Okay so not a lie but not exactly truthful either. But it's not like he wasn't hiding anything either. There was something about this entire situation that almost felt like a trap, like something too… easy. I did get this job right off the bat without any prerequisites, or references. It was weird sure but that's not what kept me confused.

Tony's POV

So we were able to find this Black Widow gal, Natalie or Natasha as she goes by these days. Fury wanted to see if she'd land in America. Why he thought she was was beyond me but he claims she'd want to be someplace she was sure her former handlers wouldn't look for her.

"America. They teach these girls that America is filled with nothing but beings leading mindlessly simple lives on paths of destruction and that they would want nothing more but to turn their allegiance from Mother Russia", Fury had said. He was so sure she'd come here after hearing that the first and only Black Widow managed to evade her handlers and those assigned to look for her and just disappear off the radar.

Well, I think I found her. Thing is, do I call Fury? Making my mind up I call and of course it doesn't take him as long as it should.

"Hey Stark!" His booming voice startled me out of my thoughts.

"I think you were right. You told me to watch out for that woman. Surprisingly she didn't dye the red hair. I don't think she's trying to hide from us."

"Yeah well she's great at espionage and manipulation. She may just be trying to make it seem like she's not hiding from anyone. But she did escape her handlers from the Red Room and that peaks my interest. I was wondering if she was may be defecting."

"You really think? I mean, that's all she knows. She deserves a chance right? She's never has a choice…" Lots of people thought Tony had no heart and cared about no one but he couldn't sit by while this girls fate was in their hands- literally.

She was sure she was being followed now. She stopped and the barely there thrums of trained footsteps stopped also. She was definitely being followed. She whipped out her Widow bites and turned around, defensive and ready to fight whoever was trailing her. She didn't see anyone on the ground but she saw the red light from something about her. A shadow from the ground. It looked like a woman. And she was flying? What the hell?

Anyhow, she set her sights on the woman but she knew she wasn't the only one there. She could feel the stares of others hiding in the shadows. She went after the woman in red and when she cornered her she was shocked to find she was just a kid. Well maybe not a kid but barely an adult. She hesitated and that cost her. Suddenly she was thrown against the brick wall with a blast of powerful red that emanated from the girls hands. Her eyes were red and so was her hair.

Great, she thought as she felt herself begun go pass out and just before her world went completely black she saw them, Pepper and Anthony. Of course. Just great.

When she woke up she was in a cell that was not a cell. The wall were clear glass and there was a cot with sheets and a pillow. It wasn't a cell she'd ever been in before. It looked like a door room, just even less inviting.

The whispers stopped when finally tuned back into the world of the living. She realized she wasn't alone and that instead she was surrounded by five other people. The girl she has fought except now her eyes were a soft blue-green and her hair wasn't actually red but just a colored brown that shone red in the lights. Surrounding her were Mr. Stark and Pepper Potts, some blonde guy in a blue suit with a giant star on his chest (wow, they really love overdoing the patriotism here don't they?) And some tall black man with one eye patch in a trench coat and next to him was a stern looking woman with dark eyes that seemed to dig into her soul. They kept staring and didn't stop and she felt exposed and she couldn't get away. She wanted nothing more but to be able to hide herself away from the prying eyes.

Someone must have realized that because they all broke their eye contact with her and started talking to each other again.

The girl spoke first, "What do we do with her?" She seemed uncertain of things and Natasha realized that she must really be as young as she seemed. Brand new to this underground world they lived in.

"Nothing. Not yet at least Wanda." The blue suited man responded. He whispered something else but it was too low and she couldn't hear. "We need to wait and see what we can get out of her." "But Steve. I-" "No Maximoff. Not yet. Fury has to ask her and she has to be willing."

They turned back to her and the black man stepped forward and proceeded to interrogate her. They wanted to know why she was here, what she was up to and why she went silent and didn't reach back to her handlers.

"I couldn't stay any longer. I didn't- I didn't want to keep doing… that. I thought this would be the place I wouldn't be found by the Red Room and the KGB." She spoke at a good pace and she was hoping they would ask no more questions.

Of course, luck had never been on her side and before long she had been thrown into a long interrogation that began to dredge up memories she'd wanted nothing more but to forget.

Who are you? What did you do? What did they train you to do? How long have you been here? How long have you been a Black Widow?

She didn't want to but she found herself unable to hold back. It was strange because usually she would never fold so quickly. She didn't know why she did now.

"My name is Natalia. Or Natalie. But go by Natasha. That is the name my parents gave me. It's one of the few things I remember other than the night I was taken from them. I have done a lot of things. Killed, tortured, espionage, hell, I'm betraying my own country just by talking to you. As to what I was trained to do? Well espionage, seduction, betrayal, murder. I was basically trained to be a human weapon. They taught me to fight along with a hundred other girls they had kidnapped from their families. I have only been here for about a week. As for how long I've been a… Black Widow… I don't know. I don't even know how old I actually am. I was given some sort of serum they said and it slows my aging. I could be 20. I could be 60. I don't know. But I remember I was on my 11th year when I was taken from my parents. Anything else you all like to know?" She was tired and she didn't like talking about everything.

They were silent. For about 30 seconds no one spoke. No one even moved until that star spangled man coughed and that seemed to break everyone out of their trances.

"Well Miss. Romanoff, I am Nick Fury. I am the director of SHIELD. You may have heard of it considering the people you worked for were very much against what we do here."

She had heard of SHIELD. The trainers were sure to make the girls aware of SHIELD and what their objective was.

"I have yes."

"Great so then this talk should be simple and easy. We want to offer you a deal. In exchange for immunity from the crimes you committed, you will have to defect to the United States and denounce Russia and all you know. Are you up for it?"

"And if I refuse? I am not one for teams especially since I was trying to escape the team I was on." She didn't want to join anyone's team. She was through with being a lackey and it didn't matter to her whose.

"Your only other choice is to be tried and charged for your crimes. This way you could attorney for them without doing so inside a heavily guarded cell."

"If I say yes?" She really didn't want this but she didn't want to spend her life in another cell. Not when she just got out. Her mind was made up. "Okay. I want to do it."

They looked at each other and the girl, Wanda, said "Okay. Then let's get started." She smiled at her and Natasha couldn't help but smile back.

"Great. Then let's get started. Maria, Maximoff. Get Romanoff started up. We'll be checking on her progress in the coming weeks." What he really meant was checking on her loyalty. She knew it wouldn't be easy to get them to trust her completely But she wanted them to. She wanted people she didn't have told hide from. Maybe they could be these people?


	4. 4

Chapter 4

Three weeks later…….

Natasha was huffing as she pulled back and punched the bag one more time.

"Okay, that's good. You use too much force when you hit with the side office your thumb. It could easily break it and do more damage to yourself than your enemy." Wanda was standing next to her watching her techniques and correcting them when need be.

Wanda's POV

She was coming along well but I sense she still felt left out and alone. She had nightmares. She didn't know I could feel them. Steve thought it'd be best to not let her know everything just yet because he didn't know if she could be trusted.

Going off what I know about her now, she definitely could be trusted but she would not allow herself to trust others after what she'd been through.

"Nat. Maybe take a break?" She waa pushing herself hard. No, not pushing- punishing. She was punishing herself. She thought she wasn't good enough and she was reverting back into her nightmares.

"Okay." She coughed and started untaping her hands before wringing them out and I handed her the ice pack. She smiled gratefully and took it and moaned when she pressed it to her knuckles.

I liked her. A lot. She was such a strong person with a strong spirit that refused to break no matter the circumstances. She wanted us to trust her but she didn't know how to achieve that. But she already had. She just didn't know it yet…

Later that night Fury came first Natasha's final check-in.

"So? You think she's ready to officially join?"

"Of you're asking if we think we can trust her- the answer is yes. You forget, Fury. I can literally read minds. She doesn't know yet and she's not hiding anything. She can be trusted as much as any of us can at this point. But what she really needs are friends. People who she can count on to not throw her back to the sharks like the Red Room did. She's afraid that one day she'll wake up and we will all have been just a dream." Wanda stepped and defended her newfound friend.

"Wanda is right. I watched her for the first few days and her entire being was filled with nervous energy. Bit the type where they're waiting and watching for a time to turn on us but it waa a sort of wanting to belong. That's all she wants. And you and everyone else knows I was the one who was the most apprehensive other than you." Steve had come to really like Natasha. She wasn't at all like he'd thought she'd be. She was so, so much more. He hoped she knew that

Natasha stood silent behind the door, tears running down her face. They liked her. Or at least Wanda and Steve did. She was thankful for the two of them. They were the ones who stepped up to really make her feel welcomed. She went back into her room. She was fortunate to have earned enough trust for them to actually give her a balcony where she could stare out onto the city. It reminded her of freedom. The bustling of people. The largeness of everything out there. She is free to be who she wanted and do what she wants. She's finally free.

The next morning everyone was called to the meeting area, the living room, she remembers it was called. Tony had a new assignment for them from Fury.

"Tokyo baby! We're going to Germany!" he was giddy like a child who was finally able to stay out past 8 on weeknights.

"That's great, I guess." Steve said looking bored and only mildly interested. She had since learned that he was the famed Captain America. She still didn't have much of a thought for him yet.

"How bout you Red? You excited? You know, to be getting out of this prison cell?" He didn't even realize his slip up and just continued staring at her like a dog wanting the last bits of your food. His gaze was almost... hoping.

"I'd rather stay as far away from Russia as I can but whatever Stark. I can stand a getaway." I'd still rather not get that close to Russia anything ever again, she thought.

"Okay! Then let's go!" She thought Tony was wayyy too excited about this.

"Hey spider, your first mission as an Avengers!"

"Ignore him. He has issues Nat." Wanda spoke into her hand. "Like serious issues. He should be put in an asylum."

The Mission….

The mission turned out to be regarding some crazy wild eyed man who kept claiming he was some sort of God sent to Earth to take care (eliminate he meant) all of whom he deemed unworthy of the new world order.

Yeah so crazies are apparently running Germany again. Not like they hadn't learned from 2 wars… but whatever. Except this time, they were being aided by some guy named Loki.

She saw flashes of red appear out of the side of her eyesight and heard the warning of "duck!" before she saw two men being thrown just above her head.

"Thanks!" She kept charging towards the middle of the fight, taking out as many enemies as she could. She could see them gathering up there and was sure it was something needing to be extinguished. Steve had already breached the outer ring of the crowd.

"On your left Captain!" She sent a few bites towards some of the extra people around him.

"They're sending air support now to try to take out the ships before they reach the ground."

"Oh well they're so on time today aren't they? It only took them 2 days to figure it out." Natasha was annoyed. Annoyed that they were called out here before the militaries of the world even realized what was going on. You'd think when a couple million people start disappearing in droves and alien spaceship show up in the atmosphere, it would be clear that maybe more than 6 people are needed to help fight it all. But of course it wasn't.

By now the familiar hums of fighter jets were able to be heard. They were finally coming in now to destroy the ships.

"I've got incoming calls from the US President, the Canadian PM and Britain's PM!" Stark was shouting over the comms.

"What do they want?! We're kinda busy here!"

"Don't really know. I'm pretty sure they're arguing with each other while calling us so… Telling them goodbye." He hung up and continued fighting.

"Ugh. They are not going to be happy about that."

"Then they should get their shit together."

"Guys? We need to get out of here. We can't do much more right now. They keep coming and we are not going to get them all today."

"How do we even get a clear enough spot to get out?"

"Wanda?"

"Got it." Wanda swirled the red tendrils of her magic around for a second and groaned as she took out an entire length of enemy fighters. The ground rumbled as she did so and everyone spared a glance at the girl as she was surrounded by nothing but fallen bodies.

Love that girl. Nat thought.

They boarded their jet quickly and Tony set the course to the mountains.

"The mountains? Why?" It didn't make sense.

"They shouldn't be there yet. I am sure they're going to where it would be most populated first."

"Great. To the mountains it is." She turned around and put controls on autopilot. "Here we go…"


	5. 5

So apparently the upcoming Black Widow movie will be the last time we see Natasha Romanoff (Scarlett's Widow). So it seems like Yelena will be replacing her and I just. I just can not right now. So here's another chapter for you guys while I try to digest this news by going through all the stages of grief. Starting with wanting to tell the Russos to go shove it.

**Three weeks later…….**

Natasha was huffing as she pulled back and punched the bag one more time.

"Okay, that's good. You use too much force when you hit with the side office your thumb. It could easily break it and do more damage to yourself than your enemy." Wanda was standing next to her watching her techniques and correcting them when need be.

Wanda's POV

She was coming along well but I sense she still felt left out and alone. She had nightmares. She didn't know I could feel them. Steve thought it'd be best to not let her know everything just yet because he didn't know if she could be trusted.

Going off what I know about her now, she definitely could be trusted but she would not allow herself to trust others after what she'd been through.

"Nat. Maybe take a break?" She waa pushing herself hard. No, not pushing- punishing. She was punishing herself. She thought she wasn't good enough and she was reverting back into her nightmares.

"Okay." She coughed and started untaping her hands before wringing them out and I handed her the ice pack. She smiled gratefully and took it and moaned when she pressed it to her knuckles.

I liked her. A lot. She was such a strong person with a strong spirit that refused to break no matter the circumstances. She wanted us to trust her but she didn't know how to achieve that. But she already had. She just didn't know it yet…

Later that night Fury came first Natasha's final check-in.

"So? You think she's ready to officially join?"

"Of you're asking if we think we can trust her- the answer is yes. You forget, Fury. I can literally read minds. She doesn't know yet and she's not hiding anything. She can be trusted as much as any of us can at this point. But what she really needs are friends. People who she can count on to not throw her back to the sharks like the Red Room did. She's afraid that one day she'll wake up and we will all have been just a dream." Wanda stepped and defended her newfound friend.

"Wanda is right. I watched her for the first few days and her entire being was filled with nervous energy. Bit the type where they're waiting and watching for a time to turn on us but it waa a sort of wanting to belong. That's all she wants. And you and everyone else knows I was the one who was the most apprehensive other than you." Steve had come to really like Natasha. She wasn't at all like he'd thought she'd be. She was so, so much more. He hoped she knew that

Natasha stood silent behind the door, tears running down her face. They liked her. Or at least Wanda and Steve did. She was thankful for the two of them. They were the ones who stepped up to really make her feel welcomed. She went back into her room. She was fortunate to have earned enough trust for them to actually give her a balcony where she could stare out onto the city. It reminded her of freedom. The bustling of people. The largeness of everything out there. She is free to be who she wanted and do what she wants. She's finally free.

The next morning everyone was called to the meeting area, the living room, she remembers it was called. Tony had a new assignment for them from Fury.

"Tokyo baby! We're going to Germany!" he was giddy like a child who was finally able to stay out past 8 on weeknights.

"That's great, I guess." Steve said looking bored and only mildly interested. She had since learned that he was the famed Captain America. She still didn't have much of a thought for him yet.

"How bout you Red? You excited? You know, to be getting out of this prison cell?" He didn't even realize his slip up and just continued staring at her like a dog wanting the last bits of your food. His gaze was almost... hoping.

"I'd rather stay as far away from Russia as I can but whatever Stark. I can stand a getaway." I'd still rather not get that close to Russia anything ever again, she thought.

"Okay! Then let's go!" She thought Tony was wayyy too excited about this.

"Hey spider, your first mission as an Avengers!"

"Ignore him. He has issues Nat." Wanda spoke into her hand. "Like serious issues. He should be put in an asylum."

The Mission….

The mission turned out to be regarding some crazy wild eyed man who kept claiming he was some sort of God sent to Earth to take care (eliminate he meant) all of whom he deemed unworthy of the new world order.

Yeah so crazies are apparently running Germany again. Not like they hadn't learned from 2 wars… but whatever. Except this time, they were being aided by some guy named Loki.

She saw flashes of red appear out of the side of her eyesight and heard the warning of "duck!" before she saw two men being thrown just above her head.

"Thanks!" She kept charging towards the middle of the fight, taking out as many enemies as she could. She could see them gathering up there and was sure it was something needing to be extinguished. Steve had already breached the outer ring of the crowd.

"On your left Captain!" She sent a few bites towards some of the extra people around him.

"They're sending air support now to try to take out the ships before they reach the ground."

"Oh well they're so on time today aren't they? It only took them 2 days to figure it out." Natasha was annoyed. Annoyed that they were called out here before the militaries of the world even realized what was going on. You'd think when a couple million people start disappearing in droves and alien spaceship show up in the atmosphere, it would be clear that maybe more than 6 people are needed to help fight it all. But of course it wasn't.

By now the familiar hums of fighter jets were able to be heard. They were finally coming in now to destroy the ships.

"I've got incoming calls from the US President, the Canadian PM and Britain's PM!" Stark was shouting over the comms.

"What do they want?! We're kinda busy here!"

"Don't really know. I'm pretty sure they're arguing with each other while calling us so… Telling them goodbye." He hung up and continued fighting.

"Ugh. They are not going to be happy about that."

"Then they should get their shit together."

"Guys? We need to get out of here. We can't do much more right now. They keep coming and we are not going to get them all today."

"How do we even get a clear enough spot to get out?"

"Wanda?"

"Got it." Wanda swirled the red tendrils of her magic around for a second and groaned as she took out an entire length of enemy fighters. The ground rumbled as she did so and everyone spared a glance at the girl as she was surrounded by nothing but fallen bodies.

Love that girl. Nat thought.

They boarded their jet quickly and Tony set the course to the mountains.

"The mountains? Why?" It didn't make sense.

"They shouldn't be there yet. I am sure they're going to where it would be most populated first."

"Great. To the mountains it is." She turned around and put controls on autopilot. "Here we go…"

Chapter 5

The Mountains

It wasn't easy landing the jet in the mountain. Natasha had to maneuver it just right and even then it almost didn't fit enough for them to hide it.

"Okay guys I've got us down. Please tell me we have enough supplies to last for awhile."

"Sort of. As long as none of us get hurt then yeah we do."

There they made the outlines of their plan. A real plan this time. No "go in and kick their assessment and get out". That one was courtesy of Tony who knew nothing of combat obviously except how to use his suit to shoot.

"What'll happen when your suit fails on you? You've got to have some other way to survive Tony." Natasha had asked. She wanted him to understand.

"Well, it hasn't failed yet so I've never had to find out."

"Let's do this. We train. The best fighters will train the rest of us." Steve chimed in. He'd been quiet the entire ride into the mountains.

"Okay. Who's first?" Wanda stood up.

"I guess I should actually know how to fight with my hands in case?" She stared at Natasha. She had remembered a conversation they'd had days earlier regarding this very subject.

Later…..

"That's it for today guys."

"Now onto the plan…" Steve said, taking charge as the leader.

"We will have to figure out how many are involved and where they are. Maybe find their meeting place because they'll surely be showing up there together. We could take many out just by hitting it." Tony said.

They all nodded.

"So call Fury and see if he has any idea of their numbers."

"Will we need teams?"

"I don't think so. For now let's just stick together and figure this out first."

Natasha didn't fall asleep. She couldn't all asleep. Couldn't let her guard down enough to. Instead, she stared intently at the dark star ridden skies, listening for any sounds of intruders and zoning on the soft snores and sighs of her teammates.

Suddenly a crunch sounded and she went on the offense. Seeing the tell tale swirls, she sat back down.

"You shouldn't sneak up people like that Wanda. Especially not people who could snap your neck without thinking about it."

"Oh I could have handled you. Stopped you before you did anything. Anyway, you knew it was me." The girl smirked and sat down, red tendrils swirling around as she made tiny pictures with them.

"Oh I'm sure." She smiled back and laid down on the damp grass.

"You couldn't sleep?" The reason she'd been out was because she had heard Nat leave and when she didn't come back she got worried. Not that something was wrong because she knew the redhead could take care of herself but because she knew she hadn't been sleeping and THAT concerned her.

"So…" she didn't know how to start this conversation. Natasha wasn't the easiest person to talk to. Especially regarding feelings…

"So?"

"You haven't been sleeping…"

"I like to keep watch. It's fine Wanda." She wanted this conversation to be done before it started.

"We're worried about you Nat. You need sleep. You do and you know it. So what's wrong? I will not leave you alone until I know." Wanda was insistent on making sure her friend wasn't left alone to deal with something as big as what she was expecting. "I know you have had days where it's bad for you." She and Nat had been talking about their pasts and she knew more than the guys did- even Fury- but she knew Nat hadn't told her everything.

"I just don't get to sleep without the nightmares Wanda. It's easier to just stay awake and watch over everyone than it is to face what I did before. Every night I've tried I see the children's hospital or the trainers from the Red Room. Please Wanda, just don't say anything. Please." God, she hated feeling this weak. She hated being this weak.

Wanda's POV

She was almost in tears. Scooting over I put my arm around her as the tears started coming faster than she could blink them away. She didn't pull away and that terrified me more. Nat would never let herself be be seen like this and she certainly wouldn't let herself be held.

"It will be okay Nat. I promise. Come on back. You sleep and I'll watch over you tonight."

"No, no. I shouldn't have burdened you with this. I'm sorry." She was trying to pull away and I wouldn't let her.

"No Nat. I am fine with being confided in. You need someone to confide in. Let me be that someone. And maybe soon, you'll let the rest of them in. This is a team. I'm your friend. Let me take some of your burdens too. Come on." I stood up and held my hand out to her and she took it and we walked back to the jet.

"Take you Wanda. For everything." She told me when we reached our bunks.

"Of course." I didn't leave her when she went in her room. Instead, I sat on her bed as she showered and when she came out I was still there.

"You'll stay until I fall asleep?" She asked in a small voice. She was scared.

"Yes I will." I'll even stay after looking away from her at my pillow and blanket I had swiped without her knowing.

"Okay. Uh, good night. And thank you." I waited until I heard her breathing start to even out and I reached over her and turned the light out.

I'll be here Nat.

Chapter 6- this chapter will pick up in the morning and they will begin executing their plan…

Part 2: going out

Part 3: the plan

Part 4: executing it. People get separated from the group and

She woke up with a start remembering the night before. She could see Wanda spread out on the floor at the foot of the bed.

She got up careful to not hit or step on the girl and gathered her clothes for the shower. She wasn't sure about the night before. She had always been taught that she could trust no one and that no one was worth compromising herself for. But Wanda, the girl seemed to be too sweet and too innocent. She made you want to tell all your secrets. And tell she apparently did. Not everything- thankfully, but enough.

Sighing she got out the shower and got dressed and headed to the common area. Most of the team was already there including Fury and Maria.

"Finally! Thought you'd never come down."

It had went all wrong. All wrong. They had gotten separated from the rest of the group. All she could remember was the foggy green smoke and the feeling of her chest tightening as she tried to catch her breath. Next thing she knew the three of them were waking up on cold concrete flooring surrounded by 3 windowless walls.

"Damn it! What happened?" Tony said getting up and walking around.

"What happened was you got distracted. That's what happened."

Flashback

Fury had stopped by (how did that man always know everything? Who was he even?!) and dropped off two more "Avengers". That's what They called themselves apparently. Avengers. Because "Avenge the Fallen". It was catchy she gave them that but really? It was also kind of crazy. These two, Sam Wilson and James Rhodey didn't seem as standoffish like the rest of S.H.I.E.L.D's agents are when they first meet her.

"I thought I'd bring you guys some backup. You know, just in case." Fury had said with a slight chuckle. He was glaring at Tony when he said it who glared back.

"That's great. I told you we could do it alone. No offense guys."

"Yeah, you did say that didn't you Stark? Guess what? I don't think so they're coming with you " with that he turned and left.

They had just started to fly back to the thick of the battle. They had a semblance of a plan which they felt guessed was better than nothing. She and Wanda would infiltrate the center by way of the back door and get the front opened for the rest. Steve and Tony were supposed to be waiting outside in the trees until the doors unlocked. It shouldn't have been that hard. There wasn't even anything that could have gone as wrong as it did. Sam and James were in the van waiting for the signal to drive it through the side. They were sure they had explosives hidden in the basement and were supposed to destroy them before they destroyed the center on the way out. Of course, it wouldn't have succeeded. Not with some billionaire playboy who didn't seem to have the slightest handle know stealth or working as a team. She didn't either but at least she could become part of one easily without putting everyone's lives in jeopardy.

That dumbass just had to make an entrance like he was expected to be there.

"Well hello boys and girls! I am here!" He roared like some idiotic animal. So much for quiet...And then it all went to shit. From that moment on nothing was on target, the outburst had closed the small window and now they were going to have to fight their way out.

Hey guys! So I thought it'd be nice to have a Nat/Wanda moment. They never really got much time together in the movies and I would've thought they'd be like sisters if it'd been explored. The next chapter will be more continuing the mission.


End file.
